. >>> this morning on "meet the press," time is running out to avoid the fiscal cliff. is a deal closer than most think? >>> in public, the lines are drawn. but behind the scenes, the give and take over taxes and entitlement cuts point toward a deal by christmas. what is standing in the way? this morning, the debate is right here. the house speaker's top lieutenant, congressman kevin mccarthy, and top white house ally, the assistant senate majority leader, dick durbin. mccarthy and durbin square off. >>> then, what is the political endgame for both republicans and democrats? who wins and who loses as this fight drags on? >>> plus, the future of the republican party is a hot topic as both sides start plotting the 2016 campaign. our political roundtable features two former capitol hill insiders, newt gingrich and lawrence o'donnell. plus, three journalists on the story. >>> the looming fiscal cliff 22 days away. we'll go inside the negotiations with two top leaders in just a moment, but i want to start with the ongoing crisis in syria where the assad government is crackin